Souls of Dragons
by blueAztec
Summary: In order to defeat the 10,000 dragons, all of the dragon slayers use a powerful but forbidden spell which sacrifices the castor's life. Natsu, Wendy, Gajeel, Sting, Rogue, Laxus and Cobra die and wake up in the Soul Society. Their memories of their previous lives remain but the dragon slayers move on, making a new life for themselves in their new world. Are they safe yet though?
1. Prologue

**Summary: In order to defeat the 10,000 dragons, all of the dragon slayers use a powerful but forbidden spell which sacrifices the castor's life. Natsu, Wendy, Gajeel, Sting, Rogue, Laxus and Cobra die and wake up in the Soul Society. Their memories of their previous lives remain but the dragon slayers move on, making a new life for themselves in their new world. Are they safe yet though?**

**WARNING – Contains spoilers if one hasn't read the manga.**

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**Prologue – Fall of Dragons**

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It was hopeless. Natsu was not one to ever think such a thing, but even when he slammed into his third dragon, crushing its skull he knew that there was just no way. Even with the help of six other Dragon Slayers and the Fire Dragon Atlas Flame on his side, 10,000 was just too many.

And at this rate, they were all going to die. Not just his friends, but everyone living in Crocus – no – Fiore, would suffer.

It did not help that the dragons were being controlled by Future Rogue. The sick bastard who had absorbed Future Sting's powers and was claiming that this was the only way to defeat Achnologia.

"There is a way you could defeat them, Natsu, everyone," a melancholic voice which came from nowhere claimed.

"Who is that?" Natsu shouted, turning his head back and forth to look for the source.

Nearby, Sting and Rogue paused their fights with the dragons and turned to one another.

"You heard it too?" Sting asked his friend, who nodded his confirmation.

"Guys?" Wendy's shrill voice could be heard.

"Why can I hear you guys' voices?" Laxus shouted.

"That is because of me, I thought you at least would've remembered me Natsu," the voice interrupted. "It is I, Zeref."

"Zeref?" Gajeel joined.

"Indeed, and I know how you can defeat the dragons. Sadly, you will relinquish your lives as the cost of this technique. What do you say?"

For several minutes, it seemed as if time was at a standstill. Natsu knew that this was not a choice made easily, but looking around at the chaos, he knew that there was no alternative.

"I'd do anything, if it means that the rest of my friends can live." He slammed his fist in to a nearby wall as a pledge of acceptance.

Surprisingly, it was Wendy who agreed next. "I feel the same way."

Sting looked over at Rogue, and then to his fallen comrades. "I can't see any better option..."

"Go for it." Rogue agreed.

Laxus sighed, "It's not like I have any choice now."

"If Salamander's doing this then so am I!" Gajeel resolved.

"I don't really have anything to live for anyway..." Cobra muttered.

"Very Well," Zeref continued, "I shall now transfer you the knowledge of this ancient spell."

With that, all seven dragon slayers felt a mind numbing pain which caused them to lose sight for many seconds. Once it had regressed, they knew exactly what to do.

They spoke in unison, raising their arms to the sky, "Bright light shining from the sun, fuse with the darkness of the night, create an opening to rid us of that which does not belong. Banish anomalies!" they bellowed.

When the incantation was done, the entire sky was filled with a blinding light which quickly turned completely and utterly dark. Nothing could be seen or heard in the void. Slowly the darkness was gone, and a single tear rolled down Natsu's cheek as he crumbled in to dust.

"Sayonara, Minna," he whispered before he was completely gone, along with his fellow dragon slayers.

The eerie silence weighed down on the capital city much more than the dragons had done before the darkness. It was a parallel to the utter confusion felt by the fighting mages before they realised what exactly had just transpired.

^_-x-x-x-_^

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**End of prologue**

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**Well, there you have it. They're dead. By the way, this was supposed to be short as it was just a prologue.**

**Even if the prologue failed to please you, read the next chapter. It might be better – one never knows. **

**If you don't like Bleach/Fairy Tail – although why one would be reading a crossover in that case, I don't know – you should stop reading now. I just don't want to have to read annoying reviews about how much Bleach/Fairy Tail sucks or whatever. **


	2. Welcome to Heaven

**Summary: In order to defeat the 10,000 dragons, all of the dragon slayers use a powerful but forbidden spell which sacrifices the castor's life. Natsu, Wendy, Gajeel, Sting, Rogue, Laxus and Cobra die and wake up in the Soul Society. Their memories of their previous lives remain but the dragon slayers move on, making a new life for themselves in their new world. Are they safe yet though?**

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**Chapter 1 – Welcome to heaven**

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The harsh rays of the spring sun penetrated through the leafy thicket and lay upon a certain man who was sleeping against the trunk of a tree. His eyes fluttered open and he took in the world around him as it came into focus. He was in a forest, lying on the mossy floor of a small clearing. Above him, the leaves on the trees shimmered with light from the bright sun in the cloudless blue sky.

'Where am I?' was his first thought. 'Wait, who am I?'

The man slowly got to his feet. All around him was forest; he couldn't see anything else.

He stood up and took a cautious step forth, trying to remember how to walk. All of a sudden, the memories flooded his mind. He was Natsu Dragneel, son of the king of fire dragons, Igneel. More memories circulated his scattered brain; laughing with his friends, fighting with his rival – Gray, meeting Lucy, fighting in the Grand Magic Games. He remembered most clearly of all the dragons. 10,000 of them. Then there was the strangest part - receiving a message from Zeref. Finally, he recalled the consequences of this message - he the other dragon slayers sacrificing their lives for everyone.

Intense emotion welled up inside Natsu and he fell to his knees. 'Happy, Lucy, Gray, Erza, Master... Everyone. I'm never going to see any of them ever again.' Another thought struck him. 'Am I dead... Is this place heaven?'

A quiet mumble woke Natsu from his stupor. He looked across to the source: Gajeel who was lying on the ground a few feet away, still asleep. Beyond him lay the other dragon slayers: Laxus, Rogue, Sting, Cobra and Wendy.

Natsu's gaze lingered on Wendy for a bit. Something was different about her. Feathers coated her wrists and ankles and small wings spouted from her back.

At that moment, however, he couldn't care less about that. Relief washed through him. 'I'm not alone.'

A strong, chill wind swept across the clearing, waking the dragon slayers. Like Natsu, they were extremely confused at first but soon understanding was visible on their features. Remembering what happened, everyone donned a solemn expression.

"What the?!" Everyone turned towards the person who had spoke. Cobra's arm was outstretched and something was materialising in his open hand. The object grew longer and thinner.

Soon it could be seen clearly; it was a katana in a dark purple sheath. The sword was about one meter in total length, with the crimson hilt making up about a foot of it. At the end of the hilt, before the beginning of the blade was a thin black guard which was mostly a straight line but curled up at each end.

"What did you do?" Rogue was the first one to break the shocked silence.

"I just tried to see if I could use my poison magic but then this happened!"

"It's happening to me too!" Sting gazed in amazement as a sheathed katana appeared in his own hand. His was completely white with a round guard.

"Alright, everyone try it! I want a sword too!" Natsu was the one to suggest this idea and none present could see a reason to protest.

Soon everyone had their own sheathed katana. Natsu's was red and orange with a flame shaped guard. The metal of the blade appeared scorched. Gajeel's was gunmetal grey with a spiky guard. Rogue wielded a pure black blade with a rectangular guard. Laxus' was yellow with a lightning bolt shaped guard. Each sword was similar in size but they varied in width, size and straightness.

Wendy's was different however. In her hand she held a small sheathed dagger which was copper coloured but with sky blue patterns. Instead of a guard, the blade and hilt were joined by four pieces of very thin metal each side which curved outwards; inside the makeshift sphere were two small glass orbs which whizzed around, not attached to anything.

"Why is mine so different?" Wendy asked the others.

"I don't know kid, but maybe it's got something to do with your current state." Laxus told the upset girl.

"What?!" The group let out a collective cry of surprise as they had been focusing too much on their new weapons to notice Wendy's new additions until then. Wendy gasped herself as she looked down, taking in the scale like feathers around her hands and feet.

"What? You only just realised?" Rogue, who had immediately noticed but hadn't said anything, shook his head at the stupidity of his companions.

"What is this?" Wendy brought everyone's attention back to her.

"I think you have dragon force, Wendy." Sting assumed the feathers were something to do with the Sky Dragon's appearance.

"Since when could you do that?" Natsu was confused.

"I didn't know I could. I wonder why I can now though." Wendy thought for a moment. "I know! It's the air!"

"Uhhh... what?" Cobra didn't see what that had to do with anything, but he did think that the air did feel different here.

"The air here is so pure. Just breathing it in gives me extreme power. Maybe that _is_why my sword is so different."

"Air...pure... So we are in heaven then. Or at least an afterlife." Gajeel - who had not spoken until then - stated. He sighed uncharacteristically and he started walk out of the clearing.

"Where are you going?" Natsu asked the mage who was acting differently to his usual self.

"Well, we're in heaven so there must be some people around." He didn't turn around or stop walking.

"You're right about that!" A voice yelled. Its owner crashed through the trees, a large group of thugs followed him soon after.

The man looked to be in his mid forties, with matted blond hair. He was wearing what appeared to be not quite rags but clothes which were hastily sewn together. His followers were similarly dressed and all of them held a sort of spear.

"And who are you supposed to be?" Gajeel calmly asked the advancing man.

"You don't need to know that! You're in White Beast territory so unless you pay the tax, we'll kill you and take it from your corpses!"

"Well, we don't have any money so it looks like we've got a fight on our hands!"

"Great! I'm all fired up!" Natsu was ecstatic at the prospect of a good fight.

"Attack!" The man cried. All of his gang rushed forwards. The dragon slayers drew their swords except for Wendy, Laxus and Rogue who were content to let the others fight for them.

Natsu, Gajeel, Cobra and Sting ran towards the thugs to meet them. The four immediately started a competition to see who could beat up the most.

Natsu who had never used a sword before just swung it around wildly, slicing spears in half and giving his opponents minor cuts which disabled them. He also used his own hand-to-hand combat skills, kicking and punching enemies.

Sting who was not faring much better with his weapon was using similar tactics.

Gajeel used his own metal sword often so he was wielding the katana slightly better than the other two. He too was using hand-to-hand in addition to the sword.

"I can _hear_ you!" Cobra informed his adversaries as he side stepped punches and blocked swipes from spears with his own sword.

The gang 'White Beast' was extremely easy to beat up. After a few minutes, the four dragon slayers were surrounded by a sea of unconscious bodies. The only member left was the blond haired leader himself, who by now had shaky knees.

"Uhhh...ummm...bye!" The man turned tail and fled.

Natsu pouted. "That wasn't fun at all." Everyone ignored him.

Sting started running in the direction the man had taken.

"Hey where are you going?!" Natsu yelled as he ran after him.

"Think about it, he must be running to his base, which would be near a town. That means people."

Natsu grinned at this and gestured for everyone to follow them.

^_-x-x-x-_^

Soi-Fon frowned. She was _never_late to captain's meetings. Unfortunately for her, Yoruichi had asked asked Soi-Fon to run an errand for her which involved breaking into the twelfth squad barracks. Now she hadn't wanted to do it but to say no to Yoruichi-_sama_ was as impossible as getting her lieutenant to loose weight.

Soi-Fon grunted at the effort of flash-stepping faster. Her surroundings blurred so she couldn't tell where she was going, only the general direction. This is what made her crash into the large figure of none other than Kenpachi Zaraki.

"Heh," he grinned, "you looking for a fight?"

"I am most certainly not." She glared at him while getting up off the floor. "Now would you be so kind as to move out of my way so I can get to the captain's meeting which you should also be going to."

"Shame. I always wanted to go up against your 'ninja skills'." Kenpachi completely ignored her comment about the meeting.

"If you don't move then you will be." Soi-Fon growled menacingly. Unfortunately it achieved nothing except making his grin grow even wider. "Whatever. I don't have time for this." She decided she didn't actually want to make herself even later by getting into a fight.

Soi-Fon shoved passed him and carried on walking. She didn't use flash-step as the doors were only about ten meters away. Kenpachi followed as he actually was going to the meeting. The pair walked through the doors and took their respective places.

"Ah, Captains Soi-Fon and Zaraki are here so we can start." Head Captain Yamamoto greeted them.

"As I'm sure many of you are aware, massive spiritual pressure has been felt somewhere in East Rukongai." He began "We are unsure of the exact whereabouts but we do know that the source is near the 70th district. It is suspected that the pressure belongs to multiple individuals as one person with that level of that power is unheard of."

"If I may interject, Head Captain..."

"You may Captain Kurotsuchi."

"The person or rather persons are of _great_ interest to me so I would like to personally seek and capture them, if I may."

"You may not!" Yamamoto seemed to be quite irritated by this request. "I have already decided who will be investigating this matter and they do not include you."

Kurotsuchi seemed downcast by the rejection. "Well if not me then at least someone from my squad."

"No." the head captain was being characteristically stubborn. "The people which will have the task of apprehending these individuals are Captain Soi-Fon, Lieutenant Omaeda and Captain Zaraki."

"Heh, I knew I would get a chance to fight them but not so soon." Zaraki spoke up. "But why Squad 2? The little princess and the fat idiot can't enjoy a good fight."

"Yes, why them? Why not me – someone who appreciates researching unusual events and beings?"

"Silence!" now Yamamoto was actually annoyed by his captains' lack of respect. "I do not have to explain my decision to the likes of you!"

That got the attention of every captain present. All eyes were turned towards Head Captain Yamamoto. Zaraki was grinning. Soi-Fon and Kurotsuchi looked annoyed. Ukitake and Kyoraku were just smiling. Unohana, Komamura and Hitsugaya were purely focused on the head captain, their faces not giving their thoughts away. Kuchiki stood there with his mask of cold indifference as usual.

^_-x-x-x-_^

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**End of chapter**

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**Apologies for the short chapter; the only way I could make it longer would be by adding more dialogue which would be boring. Please review as I do wish to know what people think however please include **_**constructive **_**criticism so that I can improve my writing.**

**Another thing, if anyone has any suggestions for the story line, tell me and I will consider it. It's not that I'm don't know where it's going or anything, just that other ideas might be better than mine.**

**The more reviews I get, the faster I'll publish (because it shows that people actually care). **


	3. Encounter

**Previously**

"**The people which will have the task of apprehending these individuals are Captain Soi-Fon, Lieutenant Omaeda and Captain Zaraki."**

"**Heh, I knew I would get a chance to fight them but not so soon." Zaraki spoke up. "But why Squad 2? The little princess and the fat idiot can't enjoy a good fight."**

"**Yes, why them? Why not me – someone who appreciates researching unusual events and beings?"**

"**Silence!" now Yamamoto was actually annoyed by his captains' lack of respect. "I do not have to explain my decision to the likes of you!"**

**That got the attention of every captain present. All eyes were turned towards Head Captain Yamamoto. Zaraki was grinning. Soi-Fon and Kurotsuchi looked annoyed. Ukitake and Kyoraku were just smiling. Unohana, Komamura and Hitsugaya were purely focused on the head captain, their faces not giving their thoughts away. Kuchiki stood there with his mask of cold indifference as usual.**

**^_-x-x-x-_^**

**Thank you to all my reviewers: QuatroPuppy, strykerhl, FoxOnPie and MANSPLICE. Yes, if one reviews, I shall thank one in my story, so review!**

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**Chapter 2 – Encounter**

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The deciduous forest was very still. The only movement came from the slight shaking of the branches in the gentle spring wind. The midday sun beat down upon everything under the clear blue sky and the only sound heard was bird song and the rustling of leaves.

_Swish_. The normally quiet sound of flash-step could easily be heard as it penetrated the peaceful scene, disrupting the birds and sending small ripples of energy which blew branches slightly. The two figures that could be seen racing through the dense forest had long ago sacrificed stealth for speed; one slightly taking the lead before the other would steal it back. They moved so swiftly that the small expanse of forest was back to normal within seconds. A third figure followed a considerable distance behind, moving a lot more slowly. Birds quickly forgot about the two disturbances and perched back upon their branches, before settling back into their usual chirping.

Soi-Fon frowned and gritted her teeth. No matter how fast her flash-step was Zaraki always matched it, easily keeping up with her.

"Tired yet, Soi-Fon?" Her partner's mocking voice filled her ears as the forest of the Rukongai district 73 whizzed past. She didn't reply but instead increased her speed, making him fall behind just slightly.

Soi-Fon stopped abruptly. They had arrived at their destination. After a short amount of time, they were joined by Marechiyo Omaeda. Yachiru had stayed behind as she had a Shinigami Women's Association meeting.

"Took you long enough Omaeda." Soi-Fon was by now used to her lazy and slow lieutenant but that didn't stop her from scolding him at every possible opportunity.

Omaeda held his tongue, he had already angered his captain enough that day.

The two squad captains and the lieutenant stood in a small clearing. At first glance, the scene looked just like any other part of the forest. It took a skilled stealth force member like Soi-Fon to recognise the small signs such as the minutely squashed grass that indicated that bodies had been laying there.

After about half an hour of investigating while Kenpachi just stood there with a bored expression, Soi-Fon had reached five conclusions. 1) That there had been seven people on the floor who had been there for at least twenty four hours. 2) These people had been attacked by a Rukongai gang of about forty people. 3) The resulting fight had caused the massive spiritual pressure which had been felt earlier. 4) After being defeated, the attackers had woken up and left. 5) One of them (most likely the leader) had fled and the original seven had chased after him/her.

She reported this information to her two companions.

"Well, I don't know about you two, but I'm going after them." Kenpachi started walking in the direction that the seven had taken. Soi-Fon and Omaeda followed suit.

^_-x-x-x-_^

The blond haired man finally stopped running. He stood bent over with his hands on his knees, trying to catch his breath.

'There's no way they could have followed me all the way here.' He thought.

Oh how wrong he was.

There was a shout and he turned to see a blond and a pink haired man sprinting towards him. Closely behind them were guy with red haired man, a blond and two black haired guys with one blue haired girl who appeared to be several years younger than the rest.

'Oh hell.' He did not have the energy left to run anymore. 'Why did I have to attack them?'

A fist connected with his gut and he was instantly knocked unconscious.

^_-x-x-x-_^

"Why did you do that, you idiot?!" Sting yelled at Natsu.

"What do you mean – he ordered those thugs to attack us!" Natsu was confused, 'did I do something wrong?' he thought.

"We were supposed to ask him where we could find people but you just had to punch him!"

Cobra was tired of all this pointless arguing, it was damaging his extra-sensitive hearing. "It doesn't matter, I can hear people nearby. Just shut up already!"

"Really, where?" Natsu still had his dragon senses but he couldn't hear anything.

Cobra pointed towards the setting sun. "That way."

After a little rest, the group set of down a path which started just a few feet away (presumably it led to a town or village). The sun stained the horizon orange and red although the other side of the sky was still pale blue. A thick band of clouds separated the two halves.

After a very brief walk, the dragon slayers found themselves at a small, run down village. The houses were extremely basic and looked like they were made in a hurry. All of them had simple thatched roofs and were small, only one story. The shabby houses ran in straight rows either side of the wide dirt path where people were huddled in twos or threes around small fires.

Natsu casually strolled up to one of these people and remarked, as politely as he could, "Hi! My friends and I are not from here and we would like very much for you to tell us what this place is and where we can find food and shelter."

The malnourished looking man simply looked away and shuffled closer to the fire. His companion, a slightly healthier looking woman answered him. "People here don't much like strangers; they don't trust 'em," she said in her gravelly voice. "You're best off going someplace else."

"Uh, thanks, but where are we?"

"I suppose you all must have just died. You're in East Rukongai, district 73."

"So it's true; we really are dead. We're in heaven." Natsu and the other six were deeply saddened by this news. All of them had guessed this but until then no one had confirmed it.

The woman let out a barking laugh. "Look around you, kid. Does this look like heaven to you?"

Natsu ignored the rhetorical question. "Do you know where we can stay?"

"You're best of going to the Seireitei and becoming Shinigami. It's about eigh..."

"Court of Pure Souls, Death Gods?!" Sting interjected. "What are you on about woman?"

She just glared at him and didn't answer his question. "As I was saying, before I was rudely interrupted," she paused to give Sting an annoyed look. "It's about eight days' walk from here. You can stop at inns along the way; there's at least one in every district. If the houses are getting more and more fancy, you're going the right way."

"Uh, thanks, but what are Shinigami?"

"I can answer that."

^_-x-x-x-_^

Kenpachi could feel it. Their targets were getting closer. He couldn't normally feel spiritual pressure, but these guys were strong. Almost as strong as him. Soi-Fon had told him that at least a few of them had swords, maybe zanpakutos. That information alone drove him forwards, towards these strong, strong people who wielded swords. He could sense it already: the sound of clashing metal, the weight of their blades pushing against his own, he could even taste their blood as he licked it off of his nameless, jagged zanpakuto.

Kenpachi grinned and forced his flash-step to be faster. The wind rushed past his huge frame and his surroundings melted into one green haze. Trees in his path were instantly cut down without causing him to miss a single step. If Kenpachi wanted to battle with someone, nothing would get in his way.

He turned his head slightly to glance at his smaller companion. She had such a determined and serious look on her face that he almost laughed. 'Can't she see the fun in this?' He thought to himself. 'After all, it's not every day that you get to track down some incredibly powerful individuals and then fight with them.'

The large captain was usually of the opinion that having to run after a person in order to have a death match was boring and just the thought put him off (if only slightly). However, this time, the thrill of the chase just made the whole ordeal even more exciting.

He felt like a hunter, having to search for traces of his prey for hours before finding a trail and relentlessly pursuing it. However, when he reached it, he wouldn't kill it quickly and silently like a hunter would, like Soi-Fon wanted him to. Instead, he would draw it out, like he did with his favourite opponents, first letting them think they had a chance by letting them have the first strike.

Kenpachi was so absorbed in his thoughts that it took him a while to realise that Soi-Fon had made another sudden stop. It was lucky that he didn't crash into her like she had done the previous day.

He slowly took in the area they were in. It was a Rukongai village, typical of the ones in the lower districts such as Zaraki and Kusajishi, although not nearly as slum-like.

The duo again waited for the second squad's lieutenant to arrive. When he did, he immediately collapsed on the ground. Soi-Fon nudged Omaeda with her foot but it appeared he was unconscious; his face was bright red and he was sweating profusely. It didn't matter though. They didn't need him.

The captains walked along the dirt road into the village. They instantly spotted their targets. There were seven in total, six men and one girl. They varied in size and appearance but they were similar ages apart from the girl who looked about twelve. It was clear that none of them were from anywhere near that place.

The group appeared to be speaking to a resident. She was sitting on the floor next to a fire. Her thin frame was wrapped in a fraying blanket which looked like it badly needed a wash. They approached the seven.

"...houses are getting more and more fancy; you're going the right way." The old woman was saying.

"Uh, thanks, but what are Shinigami?" The pink haired man asked.

"I can answer that." Apparently Soi-Fon wasn't bothering to be stealthy.

Every head, including the residents', snapped up to look in their direction. Whispers of 'Shinigami' could be heard.

The residents looked a little apprehensive that there were Death Gods in their district, especially since their captain's haoris were easily recognised.

The seven outsiders though just looked confused. It was understandable. After all, none of them had ever seen a Shinigami before.

Kenpachi grinned to himself. 'This is going to be fun.'

^_-x-x-x-_^

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**End of chapter**

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**This time I won't apologise for the short chapter because I decided to make them all this length. However, if you wish to have them longer (which means less frequent updates), then please tell me so. Also, if you wish to have a pairing, please tell me who and I shall consider. I won't make the story romance based however I might include it as a side to the story. Also, **_**constructive **_**criticism is ****very**** welcomed, so please review. **

**Another thing, please read QuatroPuppy's stories, as he has been my editor and I his so I definitely owe him at least a recommendation. **


	4. First Impressions

**Previously**

"**Uh, thanks, but what are Shinigami?" The pink haired man asked.**

"**I can answer that." Apparently Soi-Fon wasn't bothering to be stealthy.**

**Every head, including the residents', snapped up to look in their direction. Whispers of 'Shinigami' could be heard. The residents looked a little apprehensive that there were Death Gods in their district, especially since their captain's haoris were easily recognised.**

**The seven outsiders though just looked confused. It was understandable. After all, none of them had ever seen a Shinigami before.**

**Kenpachi grinned to himself. 'This is going to be fun.'**

**^_-x-x-x-_^**

******Thank you to all my reviewers: QuatroPuppy, strykerhl, FoxOnPie, MANSPLICE, Wings of Galileo, NAWLex and Matt. Yes, if one reviews, I shall thank one in my story, so review!**

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******Concept art for Wendy's zanpakuto; my description wasn't sufficient. Made by QuatroPuppy**

space-underscore deviantart com/art/Aera-Moratur-Air-Slicer-444355455?ga_submit_new=10%253A1396371929****** Replace the spaces with dots. If you can't copy it or it doesn't work then go on my profile to find the link.**

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**Chapter 3 – First impressions**

* * *

Wendy turned her head to the newcomers, her long blue hair whipping around her as she moved.

There were two of them; one was a small woman, not much taller than Wendy herself. She had cropped black hair with two long strands which were each wrapped in a white cloth and ended in a golden ring. Her silver eyes were cold and hard but they revealed nothing. The other one was a giant of a man who had long black hair in spikes, each tipped with a tiny bell which jingled in the breeze. One eye was covered with an eye patch and a long scar ran straight through the other but it didn't seem to affect his vision. Wendy couldn't tell which of them made her more nervous.

Natsu didn't seem to sense the danger which Wendy could almost feel radiating from these two. "Great! Please do tell us, it sounds cool!"

The woman was visibly taken aback by his bluntness. The man however just grinned, displaying his jagged, shark-like teeth.

"You are strong." It was a statement, not a question. "Let's fight."

"Sure!" Natsu drew his sword. He prepared to charge.

"Hold it!" the woman's cutting voice instantly forced attention to her. "We are going to take you back to the Seireitei where you will be examined before we decide what to do with you."

Natsu lowered his sword but didn't sheath it. Wendy was glad that the fight had been prevented but was on edge about what the woman had said. 'What does she mean by examined?'

"You will sheath your weapons and come with us without resistance," the woman spoke again.

"Look, lady, I don't know who or _what _you are but we ain't going anywhere with you." Obviously Laxus wasn't about to come quietly.

She put a hand on her wakizashi's hilt. "You have three seconds to drop your weapons."

No one moved. She started counting. "One...Two...Three." In a second her sword was out and she held it in front of her in a defensive position.

Every dragon slayer apart from Wendy drew their own.

"Great! Time to fight!" was exclaimed by both the huge man and the pink haired dragon slayer.

"Soi-Fon, you can take the kid and I'll take the rest," the man told the woman known as 'Soi-Fon'.

She instantly disappeared. Wendy felt a cold blade against her neck. "Fine by me. Just don't drag it out for too long, Zaraki."

"Wendy!" Natsu yelled and raced towards Soi-Fon.

There was a flash and the man, 'Zaraki', was in between them.

"Get out of my way," Natsu ground out through gritted teeth.

"Your opponent is me," Zaraki stated. Wendy could only see the back of him, but it was clear that he towered over Natsu. Like Natsu was going to be intimidated, though.

Suddenly, Wendy's surroundings blurred and instantly changed. She was now standing about twenty meters away from the rest, in the middle of a small clump of trees detached from the rest of the forest.

"What did you do?" She asked the woman in a small voice.

"I flash-stepped us away from them so that we wouldn't get caught up in Zaraki's fight. As weird as your group are, you yourself don't seem to pose a threat." Soi-Fon lowered the blade from Wendy's neck but kept a firm grip on one of her arms which had been forced behind her back.

The pair watched the battle of everyone vs Zaraki but there never seemed to be a clear victor. The dragon slayers weren't actually working together, but instead competing over who could take the man down. The man himself would just keep taking hits but never went down. He didn't even appear to be hurt by any wound, but would grin every time he was cut.

Zaraki was an excellent swordsman. So far, he had managed to fend off six swords at the same time with his own. However, no one else had ever used a sword like that before – save for Rogue - so it was understandable that their attacks were so effortlessly blocked.

'I need to do something...' Wendy thought. "I can't let them fight that monster without doing anything myself. If I could use my dagger... but then Soi-Fon would notice and stop me.'

At one point, all of the dragon slayers were on the ground with Zaraki standing over them. He raised his weapon.

Wendy thought she couldn't watch any longer, but then she noticed something. There were only five defeated dragon slayers before Zaraki.

Soi-Fon dropped her wrist and spun around. A figure burst through the trees. All Wendy say was a shock of crimson hair before they were kicked harshly in the gut and crashed backwards into a nearby trunk.

Soi-Fon walked over to the man slumped against the tree but Wendy wasn't watching any more. The man, Cobra, had drawn her captor's attention and that was all she needed.

Wendy reached for the small dagger that hung from her belt. She didn't have a plan but she didn't need one. She unsheathed the blade.

None present could even understand what happened next as a tremendous wave of force was emitted from Wendy's blade. The force blew every single person nearby off of their feet with as little effort as if they were leaves dancing in the wind.

^_-x-x-x-_^

Cobra had known that people were coming for a long time before they actually arrived. He could hear the soft tinkle of the bells in the man's hair.

When they had finally got there, he had been surprised. He was not expecting a tiny woman and giant man. Also, there had been a third person but they had been callously abandoned.

He could hear the bloodthirsty thoughts of the man and the woman's intentions to arrest them so he _wasn't_ surprised when everyone broke out fighting.

The woman, Soi-Fon, had taken Wendy into a cluster of trees and left everyone else to fight 'Zaraki'.

'Seriously, how could he even hope to win against all of us?' was Cobra's only thought as Zaraki drew his sword.

He wasn't paying attention much to the man, but rather to Wendy's and Soi-Fon's conversation in the woods. 'I wonder if I should go and help her.'

Cobra's lack of attention to Zaraki was exactly the reason why he was shocked to see the man pulling apart his clothes, baring his scarred chest.

"I'll give you a chance," he was saying, "I'll let you cut me, anywhere, if you want, you can even kill me."

"Uh, okay." Gajeel, Natsu and Sting all rushed forwards. Cobra half expected the man to dodge, block or do anything to avoid being injured, even though Cobra could hear that his muscles were completely still.

A sharp slicing noise filled the air. Zaraki still stood there with three swords embedded in his flesh, blood dripping from the wounds.

Cobra could see and hear Natsu's, Sting's, Rogue's and Gajeel's eyes widening. There, before them, Zaraki was laughing. Laughing, with three swords sticking out of his chest and blood pooling on the floor.

"It's been so long since anyone could cut me!"he grinned.

Natsu smiled back at him and withdrew his katana, as did the other two. "I'm glad you're not defeated yet, that would have been boring."

"It seems we think alike, man whose name I don't know."

"It's Natsu Dragneel." Natsu introduced all of the dragon slayers. "And you?"

"Kenpachi Zaraki."

"Enough of this." Rogue spoke for the first time since they had arrived at the village. "Kenpachi Zaraki, you will be defeated by our hands."

The shadow dragon slayer walked forwards as did Cobra and Laxus. The other three walked backwards to meet them. All of them sprinted towards Kenpachi at the same time.

The man raised his sword. Natsu, Laxus and Gajeel were instantly knocked backwards. Sting received a cut above his left eyebrow, the blood running into his eye impairing his vision. Rogue dodged a downwards strike and jumped back a bit.

Cobra would have listened to the man's thoughts, if he had been thinking anything! The way he fought reminded Cobra of Natsu a bit, being able to fight without thinking at all. He attempted to block a sideways strike but the force of it knocked the katana out of his grasp.

Cobra watched suspiciously as Kenpachi bent down to pick it up. Cobra was shocked when the man threw his sword back to him but he decided not to question Zaraki's actions and instead attacked again.

The battle raged on for quite some time. Every time someone cut Kenpachi, he would simply laugh and swing his sword at them again. It was clear to Cobra that they weren't going to win this any time soon.

He stopped and listened to Wendy for a bit. He didn't need to worry about being attacked as it seemed that Kenpachi wouldn't fight them if they did nothing.

'I need to do something...' Wendy was thinking. "I can't let them fight that monster without doing anything myself. If I could use my dagger... but then Soi-Fon would notice and stop me.'

Cobra had heard the high pitched pulsating which indicated great energy emanating from Wendy's tiny weapon. 'If I distracted Soi-Fon for a bit then Wendy could unleash that mysterious power.'

He began to sneak off into the trees. He figured that Zaraki had noticed but didn't care.

When he was close enough, he charged, breaking through the thick line of trees. He could hear that Soi-Fon knew he was there, if her turning towards him wasn't indication enough.

Cobra let the woman kick him in the gut to keep her distracted, which meant he was tossed roughly into a tree trunk. His back hit the tough bark and he slid down it.

Soi-Fon stalked over to his slumped form, leaving Wendy unrestricted. Cobra saw her already unsheathing her dagger.

The blade appeared to consist mainly of, well, glass, and it was tear shaped. The hilt was copper in colour with azure decorations depicting clouds. As soon as the glass dagger escaped from its confines, massive waves of high pressure energy were released which slammed Cobra straight through the tree and into another. The tree split and keeled over.

^_-x-x-x-_^

Natsu lay on the straw roof of a house. How he had gotten there he didn't know exactly, only that while fighting the man Kenpachi, an invisible force burst out of the trees and threw him around like a rag doll.

He jumped down and looked around. Two houses had been torn apart but luckily they looked uninhabited. Strewn around the place where his fellow dragon slayers and Kenpachi, who was sitting in one of the destroyed houses looking confused.

"I'm so sorry!" Wendy was running towards them from the direction which the force came from.

"What are you talking about, Wendy, how is this your fault?" Natsu asked the feathered girl.

"Yeah, what did you do, kid?" Kenpachi asked as well.

"I just drew my dagger and it released all of this wind! I'm so sorry!" Wendy apologised again.

"It's okay, you didn't know." Natsu attempted to comfort her.

Wendy immediately began healing his injuries.

"Wait, how are you able to use your magic?"

"I don't know, probably another effect of the air." When she was finished with Natsu, she moved on to the other dragon slayers and then Kenpachi.

^_-x-x-x-_^

* * *

**End of chapter**

* * *

**As always, tell me what you think.**

**By the way, I wasn't trying to make out that Kenpachi is stronger than all of the dragon slayers combined. They only have their zanpakutos which none of them have ever used before and can't release yet.**

**When all of them learn shikai, which they most definitely will, they'll be able to hold their own against any captain.**


	5. Acceptance and Introduction

**Previously**

"**I just drew my dagger and it released all of this wind! I'm so sorry!" Wendy apologised again.**

"**It's okay, you didn't know." Natsu attempted to comfort her.**

**Wendy immediately began healing his injuries.**

"**Wait, how are you able to use your magic?"**

"**I don't know, probably another effect of the air." When she was finished with Natsu, she moved on to the other dragon slayers and then Kenpachi.**

**^_-x-x-x-_^**

**One may be slightly confused about when this is set. Allow me to explain: it is after the defeat of Aizen so Ichigo has no powers and that's why I will not be including him in the story... at least for a while (tell me if you want him.) It is before Rukia is promoted (so she will also be a minor character, unless there are any objections?) and before all of the appearance changes. Also, one has probably noticed but there is also no captain for Squad Three, Five or Nine because the vizards have yet to join the Soul Society.**

**^_-x-x-x-_^**

**This chapter is very long compared to rest of the story because of what I said at the end of the last chapter. Basically, NAWLex claimed that my story didn't have enough description in it so he told me to write a 5000 word long chapter. It didn't actually take me that long to write it but I had to wait ages for it to be edited.**

**Well, if you thought the same then you should enjoy this. If you don't then I hate you. **

**^_-x-x-x-_^**

**Thank you to all my reviewers: QuatroPuppy, strykerhl, FoxOnPie, MANSPLICE, Sorariru, NAWLex and Matt. Yes, if one reviews, I shall thank one in my story, so review!**

* * *

**Chapter 4 – Acceptance and introduction**

* * *

Soi-Fon groaned as she woke. Her back was killing her; she had landed in an awkward position with her back curved around a rock. She rose from her current predicament and looked around herself whilst getting her bearings straight. She was in the same patch of trees in which she had been before she blacked out, but she was about ten metres further away.

The ground under her feet was dry and cracked; it obviously hadn't rained recently in Rukongai. Sparse grass spouted from the parched ground; it was yellowish brown and came up easily, getting stuck to the bottom of her small black slip-on shoes whenever she took a step.

Soi-Fon frowned as she tried to remember what had happened. She mentally replayed small fragments of the events which had just occurred; she recalled restraining the young girl before sensing another presence creeping up on her. She smirked as she remembered kicking the red-haired nuisance in the gut – he was such an amateur at hand-to-hand combat. But then, the girl had taken advantage of her distraction and tried to draw her zanpakuto.

'I think that when the weapon was unsheathed, it released built up power, which is what knocked us all about. But that means that... No, I will not give them this chance to escape!' Soi-Fon rushed towards where her partner had been fighting, using flash-step to achieve maximum speed.

When she got there she could see all of the six people who had been battling Zaraki sitting down and amiably chatting with him. She assumed that the man who had attempted to attack her had regrouped with them while she was comatose. Zaraki was sitting atop a small section of wall; the house which it came from was nowhere to be seen. Beside him was the blue-haired girl who knelt on the floor holding her hands over his chest. A soft blue light was being emitted from them.

It was an unusual sight to say the least. Soi-Fon considered the possibility that he was under some sort of hypnosis but quickly dismissed the idea. She searched for any visible effects of the blue light. She watched in awe as the jagged cut half hidden by the small hands repaired itself before her very eyes. 'It reminds me of that Orihime Inoue girl's power but it looks more like healing kido. If it is, then her healing abilities must rival Captain Unohana's.'

Before long, Soi-Fon was spotted by the girl. She got up and ran towards the unmoving captain and took her arm. Soi-Fon was so shocked that she allowed herself to be lead back towards where the others were sat.

Without words, the girl tugged on the arm which she still held, prompting her to sit down. Much like with Zaraki, the girl splayed her hands over Soi-Fon's back and the blue light once again appeared. Soi-Fon immediately noticed the difference; the warm, caring hands made rapidly alleviated much of the pain.

After a few minutes in which everyone was quiet, the damage completely receded. The hands were removed, the light gone and the girl wiped a few beads of sweat off which had accumulated during the healing process. Everyone apart from Zaraki stared at Soi-Fon, expecting her to reinitiate their fight or something equally disagreeable.

"What's your name, child?" she asked the little girl, breaking the silence. Relief was evident on the faces of those who had been closely watching her.

"Wendy Marvell," the girl told her shyly. 'Wendy' then introduced the rest of her group, pointing to each one and saying their name. Soi-Fon assumed Zaraki had already introduced himself.

"Oh yeah!" the one named 'Natsu' exclaimed afterwards. "What's a Shinigami?"

Soi-Fon decided that the group were harmless (and going by their fight with Zaraki, they couldn't even use their zanpakutos properly) so she explained to them everything of importance about the Shinigami such as their purpose and duties, squads, positions within a squad, kido and zanpakutos.

'That reminds me...' Soi-Fon thought as the others were taking all of this information in. She told the others, "My lieutenant is a ways down that road. He passed out from having to flash-step so much."

"Okay I'll go heal him." Wendy decided. 'Is she so trusting of everyone? I mean, my colleague was just slicing up her friends.' Soi-Fon put it down to the innocence of youth.

Everyone followed her to the place on the road where Omaeda was still lying unconscious on the dusty dirt road. While Wendy preformed her magic on him, the seven took it in turns to tell the captains of Squad Two and Squad Eleven about their own world and what had happened to them which brought them to the Soul Society.

"So that explains why you all have such powerful spiritual pressure," Soi-Fon concluded when they had finished their story. It sounded preposterous but Soi-Fon couldn't help but believe them. After all, they weren't hostile and one of them had gone so far as to heal her injuries.

"I do need to take you back to the Seireitei where you can repeat that all to Head Captain Yamamoto. I think that he would want to keep an eye on you so you might be forced to become Shinigami or at least stay within the Seireitei."

"I kind of want to go back to Fairy Tail... but... I guess that's impossible now, so that sounds interesting." Natsu apparently thought so. There were a few nods coming from the spiky blond and long black haired 'dragon slayers'.

"You'd fit right in the eleventh." Zaraki told the pink haired man. "All you have to do is fight. All day. My squad literally do nothing else."

Natsu seemed overjoyed by this information if the large grin on his face was any indication. The two who had agreed with his view about becoming Shinigami were displaying similar facial expressions, as if Squad Eleven sound like the best thing in the world.

"Zaraki, we don't know for sure if the 'mages' will become Shinigami at all." Soi-Fon scolded. "Anyway, when Omaeda wakes up we should go back to the Seireitei and report to the head captain."

^_-x-x-x-_^

Seeing as the dragon slayers didn't know how to flash-step, Soi-Fon grabbed a hold of Wendy and Natsu, Kenpachi took Laxus, Rogue and Sting while Omaeda clutched the wrists of Cobra and Gajeel. The three Shinigami flash-stepped themselves and their passengers towards the Seireitei at a slow rate since it was rather hard to transport more than one additional person.

The gentle pace didn't matter at all to Rogue though. In fact, it allowed him to admire the new scenery along the journey. The problem was being dragged along by that giant, Zaraki.

Rogue sighed and tried to focus on the features of the many districts which they passed through. That old woman was right: the houses were getting fancier. The district they had started in had houses which were just a step up from a pile of rubble; they had bare, windowless walls and simple straw roofs. The size of them was tiny as well, they could not possibly house more than one person and even that was generous.

The district they were currently racing (in Rogue's opinion) through, was much, much larger than district 73. Instead of a dirt road, it had a paved one: long, thick slabs of grey stone placed horizontally in front of the last one, edges touching. It ran all the way through the district, never bending so that the village was split in half by it. The ground around it was still the parched dirt and the stone was covered with a thick sheen of dust.

The houses either side of them were much larger in size and most were two storeys tall. They were different, however, to the ones Rogue was used to in Fiore. Instead of the bright coloured, stone walls, wooden beams and chimneys, the district's houses ware all brownish green in colour and the outside walls were bare. He had not spotted a single chimney.

Despite the time which must have been well over eight pm as the sun had set a long while ago, people came out of their homes to stare at them. Rogue guessed it was because Shinigami were such an uncommon sight and usually indicated that a 'hollow' was nearby. The residents were ignored though.

After an hour of more flash-stepping, Rogue was surprised to find that they had reached the end of the districts. They were now faced with a huge wall, the like of which he had never seen before. It was about sixty feet high and although it was an insanely long wall, one was able to see identify the slight curve in it which meant the 'Seireitei' which it surrounded was a circular shape.

The wall was white and made from smooth stone which Rogue couldn't identify. The only break in the wall was directly in front of the ten which was a huge gate as tall as the wall itself. The gate was made from giant wooden beams held together by black metal running horizontally along the gate, bolted to the wood.

Surprisingly, the thing that Rogue noticed last was the huge man standing in front of the gate. He was roughly half the height of the wall. He was still able to wear the Shinigami uniform but it exposed the left side of his chest. His left shoulder and upper arm were protected by a simple piece of armour made from multiple sheets of metal so that it was able to bend with his movements. Atop his head was a cylindrical dull red hat with yellow tassels attached to the sides.

"Jidanbo let us through," Soi-Fon demanded of the oversized man.

"Oh, Captain Soi-Fon," the giant replied. "Of course." He turned around, displaying his back and the black ponytail running down to his waist. 'Jidanbo' stooped down and dug his hands into the earth, catching the bottom of the gate.

With much effort, he began to pull it up, the muscles in his shoulders, back and arms visibly straining. When it was about half way up, he took a step underneath it and rested it on his shoulders, his back bent over, allowing them to pass. After they were safely through, Jidanbo stepped outside the perimeter of the wall again, gently releasing the end of the gate so it slid down with ease.

^_-x-x-x-_^

Yamamoto sighed and put down the last piece of paperwork onto his pale oak desk. 'Those two sure are taking their time,' he thought while rising to stretch before reseating himself in his uncomfortable chair. Ordinarily, he'd retire to his spacious quarters to rest with a steaming cup of tea after finishing his paperwork, however today he had to wait for Soi-Fon and Zaraki to return from their mission.

The grandfather clock which his lieutenant had gotten him from the Human World struck a chord followed by eleven chimes signalling that that it was exactly eleven pm. It had taken Yamamoto a while to learn to read the time but once he'd gotten the hang of it, he couldn't live without the huge device, although he would never admit it.

A cold breeze entered the room from outside, making him shiver slightly. 'I guess that having only three walls isn't the best idea. Maybe I'll install another.' He turned his head to look at the place in which the fourth wall should be. It was so dark that the Seireitei below couldn't be seen; the only light came from the full moon and glittering stars.

Yamamoto had been doing his work by candlelight – another thing he would like installed would be 'electric lights' but then the Seireitei would need a way of distributing 'electricity' itself, and a source of power to produce it.

While absorbed in his thoughts about everything the Seireitei needed, Yamamoto's lieutenant, Chojiro Sasakibe, appeared out of nowhere. The grey-haired man was already kneeling before his captain's desk with his head bowed as usual.

"Captains Soi-Fon and Zaraki have arrived, Captain-sama."

'Finally.' He took a deep breath. "Send them in at once."

"Hai." Sasakibe immediately flash-stepped out of the office. Yamamoto was sometimes grateful that his lieutenant never wanted to do 'small talk' but occasionally it would leave him thinking that their relationship was overly formal - other captains chatted with their lieutenants.

The grand sliding door opened smoothly to reveal Captain Soi-Fon, Captain Zaraki, Lieutenant Omaeda and seven people Yamamoto did not know. The ten walked into his office, Soi-Fon and Omaeda being the only ones polite enough to bow slightly before entering.

The second and eleventh division captains stood before the head captain's desk and the others hesitantly took their place a ways behind. Yamamoto could see the tense and uneasy look on their faces, as if they were Shinigami about to be given a piece of mind by their captain.

"What is the meaning of this?" he demanded. He was not in the mood to wait for them to give their report first.

"Sir I can explain..." Soi-Fon began but she was just interrupted by her mission partner.

"We found 'em in district were the source of all that power. I had a great scuffle with all of them minus the girl; they're actually quite strong."

Soi-Fon glared at Zaraki before continuing where he had left off. "During their fight, the girl drew her zanpakuto and a massive amount of wind was released which put an end to the battle. The girl, Wendy Marvell, claims she did not intend for that to happen and she used a form of healing kido to repair our wounds."

"I see." The Head Captain stated. "And what is your verdict on them, being the head of the punishment force?"

"I have evaluated their combat ability, their personality and how much of a threat they pose."

"And...?" Yamamoto prompted. He was tired of all the beating around the bush; he just wanted her to get to the point so he could go home.

"While each of them is an extremely powerful individual, I do not think that they are a danger. Their story was explained to me and I studied them for any hints of untruthfulness but found none. I believe that they are telling the truth."

"And what is your story?" He addressed the mysterious group of seven who were completely silent.

The pink haired man opened his mouth to explain but Yamamoto interrupted him.

"Never mind, you can tell it to every captain at once."

As soon as he reached out his hand, a hell butterfly identical to every other fluttered in languidly from outside and settled on his outstretched fingers. After a while it flew back out, off to inform all captains and lieutenants of another emergency meeting.

^_-x-x-x-_^

The small office was perfectly quiet save for the sound of the gentle breeze blowing in through the open window and disturbing the papers on the desk which belonged to a certain red-haired lieutenant who was currently peacefully dozing.

Renji Abari's arm slid off the table, bringing a teacup with it, the shattering sound breaking the silence. The sharp noise woke him with a start from the wonderful dream he had been having about finally surpassing and beating his captain, winning the heart of every woman in the Soul Society.

'Noo! Why did it have to be a dream?!' Was his waking thought before he realised something. Something very important.

"Ahhhh!" he screamed out loud, slapping his hand on his tattooed forehead. "How could I let myself fall asleep like this?! Captain Kuchiki might literally kill me if I don't get those reports in by the deadline, which is tomorrow!" Renji shuddered at the thought of beautiful Senbonzakura slicing into his flesh once again.

^_-x-x-x-_^

Right now, the noble man in question was relaxing, practicing his calligraphy before a sudden violent sneeze caused him to smear ink across the pure white paper.

"Damn it!" Byakuya Kuchiki exclaimed aloud without thinking.

Instantly he could hear the slapping of bare feet on the cold wooden floor before the door was practically ripped off from the force of being opened so forcefully.

"Nii-sama! Are you alright?" Rukia had _never _heard her esteemed brother use any form of crude language.

"I'm fine, Rukia, why do you ask?" The noble waved off her concern, pretending nothing had happened.

"Uhhh, did you say 'damn it'?" Rukia was confused. She was sure she had heard her brother use a curse.

"Rukia, have I ever said those or similar words before? No, I have not. That is because the head of the Kuchiki clan must always be dignified, even within the confines of his own home."

"Uhhh, okay. Goodnight." Rukia was too tired to argue with her brother so she simply went back to bed to get some much needed sleep.

"Goodnight."

Her retreating footsteps could be heard echoing in the long empty halls of the Kuchiki manner long after she had left and slid the paper door back to its original position.

She had decided not to press the matter, for which Byakuya was deeply grateful. He couldn't believe his slipup. Maybe he was talking too much with Abari and picking up his vulgarity.

^_-x-x-x-_^

Just as Renji had finally managed to settle back into his work despite the extremely late hour, a black and purple monarch butterfly landed on the hand holding the delicate brush which had been rapidly spreading ink into barely legible words across sheets of paper.

'An emergency captain and lieutenant's meeting?' he thought. 'This must be really important seeing as there was a captain's meeting earlier. The reports will have to wait until after. I'll stay here all night and pretend that I was early to shock Captain.'

The artificial insect had long since flown away, probably to inform others of the meeting. 'We really need a more effective method of communication, like 'email'. But then we'd need 'computers', which would be great because we could get our paperwork done so quickly and simply send it the head captain! I'll make sure to mention it to Captain Kuchiki so he can bring it up next routine captain's meeting.'

Right now though, Renji tiredly stood up and made his way to the door which was also the exit to the barracks. As soon as he was outside, the lieutenant broke into a lazy flash-step, skipping over the traditional Japanese-style roofs.

^_-x-x-x-_^

Wendy waited with nervous anticipation. She and the other dragon slayers were told to stand at the front of the massive meeting hall, right of the head captain himself. 'Yamamoto-san seemed to be fine with us, but how are the other 'captains' going to take the news that we're from another world?'

The giant doors swung open. In walked two men. One had long white hair and somehow seemed quite frail even if his body language didn't show it. The man was wearing the same white haori as Soi-Fon and Kenpachi but his had sleeves. The other man had long wavy brown hair tied in a ponytail which was partially hidden under his large straw hat. He was also wearing the haori but his was covered with a pink floral kimono. They both politely smiled at Soi-Fon, Omaeda and Kenpachi who were already there due to having just been in the head captain's office.

The smiles on the duo's faces were quickly replaced by looks of confusion when they spotted the dragon slayers. They still took their respective positions however.

Three more captains walked in. One was about the same height as Wendy and couldn't be much older; he had spiky white hair and brilliant turquoise eyes. Another was average height; he had long midnight black hair which was kept up by two bone white headpieces. The man had a long silk scarf wrapped around his neck. The third wasn't exactly a man. He was over nine feet tall, but stranger than that was the fact that he had a head of a fox and he was covered in short light brown fur.

Unlike the first two, these people didn't seem to really care or even notice the feathered girl at the front with her six companions.

Behind the three were two others who were wearing the same uniform minus the haoris, indicating they were 'lieutenants': a man and a woman. The man stood behind the fox-captain and the woman behind the short white haired captain.

Again and again, the door opened to reveal more and more people – there was no end to them! Three men then six women, only one of them a captain with a small pink haired girl ridding on her shoulder, who immediately jumped onto Kenpachi's shoulder with a cry of "Ken-chan!"

Last to arrive was a captain who had an appearance which deeply disturbed Wendy. His skin was pure white apart from a black cross going through his face except for his nose, which was white. His face was surrounded by a golden frame with a long chin attachment. He had golden eyes, yellow teeth and blue hair which in turn framed his entire face and gold attachments.

"Well, well," the creepy man gave a yellow-toothed smile to Wendy when he spotted her companions. "What have we here?"

^_-x-x-x-_^

* * *

**End of chapter**

* * *

**Okay, not quite five thousand words (about 3800) but if one noticed, I did include more description but it took me longer to write the chapter. **

**By the way, did you like the jokes I made about how the Seireitei should copy human technology, or did they just frustrate you?**


	6. AN

**A/N: I am going to make a few pairings so I thought I'd ask my readers who they wanted. I created a poll on my profile so vote.**

**P.S Romance will be a side a to story.**

**P.P.S I'm not writing anything M rated.**

**P.P.P.S If people don't vote then I will do something weird and scary... so hurry and vote if you want to keep Kurotsuchi's hands away from Natsu. Help me save his innocence... by voting! Please, he's begging you... unless I make him want it. Mwuhahaha I am author! I am God!**

**P.P.P.P.S Seriously, please vote.**


	7. The remainder

**By the way, do you like the way I write each section in third person but in one specific person's point of view?** **– That is not a rhetorical question so I expect it to be answered. Preferably in a review along with some constructive criticism.**

**Thank you to all my reviewers: QuatroPuppy, strykerhl, FoxOnPie, MANSPLICE, Sorariru, NAWLex, Matt, Turtleeagle, darkblade2814, Rin Ice Miyako and yaoifor now. Yes, if one reviews, I shall thank one in my story, so review!**

* * *

**Chapter 5 – The remainder**

* * *

The town of Magnolia was as normal. Birds in trees were singing, the wind was blowing and there were but a few clouds scattered across the otherwise clear cyan sky. On the streets, merchants sold items as usual and bartered with passersby.

The only difference in Magnolia was the fact that the normally boisterous guild, Fairy Tail, was not actually very loud at all. Instead of being full of rowdy mages constantly brawling, the guild was empty; the sombre members from many guilds such as Blue Pegasus and Lamia Scale and even Sabretooth were currently at Kaldia Cathedral.

They had gathered there for the funerals of some of Fairy Tail's most prominent members: Natsu, Wendy, Gajeel and Laxus. Sabretooth was there for their own losses: Sting and Rogue. It was a joint funeral because the deaths of both guilds' members for the same cause brought the two together and they settled their differences temporarily to mourn the dragon slayers.

A single member from a different guild sat near the back of the spacious church with a girl. Just him had been released from prison for this one day to attend the service. The huge man had long flowing orange hair and a face which was flat and the sides were made up of straight lines.

The elderly priest began to speak about how 'their souls are in a better place' but all Hot Eye could think was: 'He knows nothing of the pain of losing a friend'. Granted, they weren't particularly close but secretly the earth mage had always thought that Cobra was so strong that he was invincible, the same went for the other members of Oracion Seis. He would never have guessed the poison dragon slayer would sacrifice his life for humanity – it just didn't seem like him.

Hot Eye put his hand on the shoulder of his companion - a crying Kinana - to offer just a little bit of comfort. He had been told that she was previously Cubellios, Cobra's pet snake and best friend.

The priest droned on and on - or maybe it was just that the guild members present were too upset to hear anything that he was saying - until it was finally time for Master Makarov to speak. The short man walked up to the golden lectern and stood on top of a small stool so that the congregation could see him. His cheeks were clearly stained with tears; his voice close to breaking.

"Natsu, Wendy, Gajeel and Laxus," he began. "They were my children and I their father. I may not have known Wendy and Gajeel for long but it is unimportant, I loved them the same. But they had to go and die, leaving us behind. When we were stuck on Tenroujima, everyone could hope that we were okay. But there is no hope this time. We have seen their ashes. We all know that Natsu, Gajeel, Wendy, Laxus, Sting, Rogue and Cobra are never coming back."

Only then did he break down and start crying again, setting everyone else off, even members of Sabretooth, including Minerva who although tried to come across as not caring was obviously at least somewhat affected.

^_-x-x-x-_^

The streets of Karakura were solely lit by bright yellow lamp-posts; the sun had long since sunk beneath the horizon and heavy grey clouds obscured the moon and the stars from view.

A man ran frantically through the streets trying to shake off his pursuer. He would not die here, damn it. He may have been able to do it normally but the short chain hanging from his chest was making breathing rather difficult.

The man finally collapsed on the ground from exhaustion. He didn't chance a look but he could hear a river flowing somewhere on his right. Also judging by the soft ground, he assumed he was kneeling on the grass of the river bank.

The spirit lifted his head up to face the creature. It was the size of a small house and its body was that of a huge spider, with eight giant legs to hold it up. Its body was separated into two parts: the legs were attached to the front part and the back part looked like a huge ball, round and swollen. Its body and legs were pure black so it was difficult to distinguish it from the shadows. The only exception to this was its back, on which there was a blood red hourglass shape.

The creature had a huge, gaping hole where its heart should be, in the centre of the front body segment. The most disturbing thing about it by far was the bone white mask which covered its entire face, leaving eight holes for its glowing red eyes.

When it was close enough, the creature opened its huge mouth and roared. The chilling sound which shook the earth was one of the most pain filled, anguished cries that the spirit had ever heard. For a very brief moment, all he could think was: 'I understand you. You are hurting so you lash out at the world.'

Though the sympathetic thoughts would not save him when the beast charged as him, screaming all the while.

What would save him was the giant blue arrow which came out of seemingly nowhere, piercing the bone-mask, shattering it into a thousand pieces. The creature reeled back, clutching its front legs to its face, screeching before a loud tearing noise was heard. Behind the monster, a huge black space opened up, allowing it to step back and escape. The rip in the sky closed like a mouth, vanishing after the spider.

The spirit turned his head searching for the bowman. Eventually his eyes landed upon a young man dressed head to foot in white clothes trimmed with bright blue. The newcomer raised a gloved hand to push back the rectangular glasses on his face and to tuck one of his black bangs behind his ear.

"You should stay here while I go get a Shinigami to perform konso on you." His voice was filled with arrogance as if he was superior to everyone. The spirit took an instant dislike to the man.

The white clad man didn't wait for a reply and disappeared, presumably to go find this 'Shinigami'.

'When did I get so pathetic that I need to be saved like a damsel in distress?' the spirit thought. 'Well, if that brat thinks I'm going to sit around waiting to be 'konsoed' then he's got another thing coming.'

True to his word, he immediately stood and again began to run.

^_-x-x-x-_^

* * *

**End of chapter**

* * *

**Yes, it was a really short chapter, I know. It was merely a foreshadowing of events to come. 'What of?' though is the question.**

**Review.**

**Current top ten poll results:**

**1) Cobra x Soi-Fon **

**2) Natsu x Yoruichi**

**3) Natsu x Rukia**

**4) Wendy x Karin**

**5) Wendy x Hitsugaya**

**6) Laxus x Matsumoto**

**7) Rogue x Hinamori**

**8) Zeref x Achnologia**

**9) Laxus x Yoruichi**

**10) Cobra x Unohana**

**If you dislike any of these, then vote for others.**


	8. Evolution

**Previously**

**The creature had a huge, gaping hole where its heart should be, in the centre of the first body part. The most disturbing thing about it by far was the bone white mask which covered its entire face, leaving eight holes for its glowing red eyes.**

**When it was close enough, the creature opened its huge mouth and roared. The chilling sound which shook the earth was one of the most pain filled, anguished cries that the spirit had ever heard. For a very brief moment, all he could think was: 'I understand you. You are hurting so you lash out at the world.'**

**Though the sympathetic thoughts would not save him when the beast charged as him, screaming all the while.**

**What would save him was the giant blue arrow which came out of seemingly nowhere, piercing the bone-mask, shattering it into a thousand pieces. The creature reeled back, clutching its front legs to its face, screeching before a loud tearing noise was heard. Behind the monster, a huge black space opened up, allowing it to step back and escape. The rip in the sky closed like a mouth, vanishing after the spider.**

**^_-x-x-x-_^**

**Beta is QuatroPuppy **

* * *

**Evolution**

* * *

Hueco Mundo was a desolate place. To say that would be an understatement in fact. Vast deserts covered the surface, the white sand somehow visible in merely the cold light of the giant moon that always hung in the sky, making there be no day or night. That was what Hueco Mundo was like: never changing, always night, the only colours white and black.

The only colour provided was from the creatures that lived there. The only structure was Las Noches. The gigantic palace was recently abandoned; all its inhabitants dead or gone to live in a cave somewhere.

Below the surface, where giant quartz pillars rose from the ground, their tips making up the white trees which dotted the Hueco Mundo landscape, and where the huge Gillians wandered aimlessly, a newly opened gargantua was just closing. The hollow who had stepped out of it was writhing in pain, screaming at the top of its voice, drawing two curious hollows to its thrashing form.

"Hey, why don't we just eat it?" one of them asked its companion, whilst narrowly dodging a flailing leg. It was a red hollow and human shaped, but its arms were oversized so it stood hunched over, its hands resting on the ground.

"Yeah, okay," the other replied. It was dark blue and was also human shaped but stood upright unlike the red hollow.

Satisfied with the response, the first waited for another leg to come its direction. When one did, it leaned forwards and caught the end in its teeth.

Before the hollow could bite down however, the other hollow stopped moving. The hollow, still with a leg in its mouth, looked down confusedly, wondering if the other was dead. It wasn't able to anticipate the quick movement of the still hollow and suddenly found that one of the other seven legs was now embedded in its head, the sharp end of it poking out of the back. The hollow was dead before it could even register the removal of the appendage.

The slain hollow's companion watched with a smile as the spider like hollow withdrew its blood covered legs, producing a sickening crunch as the mask broke into even more shards. 'Now I don't have to share,' it thought.

The black hollow's mask was newly formed, exactly like it was before except for the two long fangs which now jutted out from the sides of its mouth, like a spider. The creature turned to face the second hollow who was still grinning about the first's death.

The spider-hollow stalked towards the other slowly. With a burst of speed, the spider rushed towards its enemy, sinking its new fangs into the neck of the other before it had time to react.

The spider released its victim even though the fangs had actually only broken the tough skin of the other. It crawled back a few steps to admire its handiwork.

"That didn't hurt at all." The confident blue hollow couldn't tell it was being played with. A sharp pain shot through its body stemming from the bite wound. The hollow howled and dropped to its knees, clutching its hands to its neck.

The spider was silent and made no movement. The other hollow fell face first onto the cold hard ground. Its dying thought was: 'Poison, but how? It's only a low level hollow like me.'

^_-x-x-x-_^

For once, Captain Mayuri Kurotsuchi was _trying _to listen to the Head Captain's ramblings (In his opinion) at a captain and lieutenant's meeting which was not actually boring. Quite the opposite, really. He was interested in what Yamamoto had to say about the seven mysterious figures, but not about the mundane things that everyone already knew or were covered by the last meeting that morning.

Currently, the head captain was just stating why he had summoned them there and he could not have possibly have been more slow with it.

'Get to the point already!' Every captain probably shared Kurotsuchi's thoughts. He could clearly see the signs of impatience present in the expressions around the meeting hall. Curiosity too, even on Kuchiki's face - although he was trying to hide it.

Of course the fact that the source of the explosive spiritual pressure felt earlier standing at the front would raise a few eyebrows.

Kurotsuchi's fascination was the most expressed. The researcher was leaning so far forwards that it was a miracle he hadn't stumbled over already. His eyes were solely focused on the seven and Yamamoto.

"... district seventy. Captain Soi-Fon will now give a summary of her report." This snapped Kurotsuchi out of his thoughts of exactly what experiments he perform on the guests.

The woman stepped forwards, her hands kept perfectly still by her sides.

"As we got closer to the general area, we were able to pinpoint the location of the spiritual pressure to district seventy three. When we arrived there, there were these seven people speaking to a resident. Captain Zaraki provoked them into a fight while I restrained the girl. One of them attempted to free her by attacking me. This allowed her to unsheathe her zanpakuto, which released a mass of air, ending the battle. Afterwards, she healed our injuries and both groups explained our situations to the other. We then headed back to the Seireitei."

'Well, if that was a summary,' Kurotsuchi thought, 'I don't want to hear the full version.'

But the report certainly intrigued him. If the little blue-haired girl could summon that much power from simply drawing her sword, how powerful were her companions? He would definitely request to dissect them later.

The other captains also seemed surprised by this news. After all, the fact that they even owned zanpakutos was amazing. The head captain didn't allow any questions, his sudden and powerful voice silenced them before they could even voice their concerns.

"Now then, we will hear another summarised report from the people in question - their life story."

Kurotsuchi almost groaned. He didn't care for anything they had to say, he just wanted to skip to the research and experiments.

"You there," Yamamoto pointed to the one with yellow spiky hair and a lightning bolt shaped scar running through his eye, "Tell us everything we need to know about who you are and where you came from."

Said man stepped forwards. He was extremely tall and wore a heavy fur trimmed coat.

"My name is Laxus Dreyar." He then began to explain all about how they had ended up in the Soul Society.

^_-x-x-x-_^

Latrodectus Mactans crept towards its meal. The first hollow it had killed was only a few feet away so it would be eaten first. Unlike a real spider, it didn't _need_ to predigest its food but it did make it easier. The second hollow had been injected with a lethal dose of venom so it would be lovely and mushy by now. If the hollow had had a tongue it would have been licking the place where its lips should be.

But before it had the chance to approach, a collective roar echoed through the small clearing. Several hollows with small wings descended upon the spider-hollow while more hollows ran towards it on the ground.

When the advancing hollows met the spider, they swiped with their claws and snapped with their teeth. The flying hollows reached out with their talons, attempting to snatch it away for themselves. Latrodectus Mactans fought back of course. It used its long front legs to sweep away enemies in front of it while using the sharp ends of its shorter second pair to shatter masks.

The battle had raged on for quite some time, the attacking hollows had long since given up team work and were now striking anything that moved, until a strange thing started happening. Whenever two hollows touched, they would get stuck together. The joined parts would then melt and the hollows would become one entity.

Eventually, every hollow had been reduced to a quivering mass of flesh, masks detached and floating on the surface. The stuff started bubbling, turning black and viscous like tar.

The individual masks grouped together to form a huge white slab.

The tar like substance began to rise and a figure emerged. Its head almost reached the top of the Menos Forest and it was wider than the pillars which formed the quartz trees. It wore a huge black cloak that obscured its hands from sight. The creature stood on two white feet resembling like boots, with small heels and pointed, curled toes. A ring of spikes ran around the chest and below it was the hollow hole.

The mask also began to take shape. The mask covered the entire face and had a long beak-like nose, the same as every other Gillian, but instead of having two small eye holes, the new being's had a rectangular hole that covered the entire space where they should have been. Running across the black space was a thin diagonal cross.

The different mask reflected this one's individuality, for one of the hollows which had formed the Gillian had already taken control of the body. Latrodectus Mactans had a much stronger mind and was far more powerful than the others. It really was easy for it to seize the should be shared power for itself.

^_-x-x-x-_^

"Well, I suppose I should start by saying that we came from a different world to this one. Ours is called 'Earthland'. It is a world full of something called 'magic', which I am told this world doesn't have.

"Magic is a sort of energy, I suppose like your 'spiritual pressure', and people called 'mages' have it in their bodies. It allows us to perform 'spells'. Spells are manifestations of magic and they can come in many different forms. For example, my magic is lightning but some people can use more than one.

" There are two types of magic: caster magic and holder magic. Caster magic is expelled through the body. Holder magic uses an external source but still uses the mage's

magic energy.

"As well as being contained within people there is also a crystal-like substance called Lacrima. These can be used in 'magical items' – anything from weapons with added effects to tools such as magic air pens and devices which can change the colour of one's attire."

Most of the captains and lieutenants around the hall appeared to taking this information in but a few such as Omaeda and Yachiru looked slightly confused. Kenpachi didn't even seem to care.

"So, our zanpakutos would be 'holder magic' then?" Hitsugaya asked Laxus.

He thought back to the explanation of the weapons from Soi-Fon. She had given the dragon slayers a very thorough overview of the Soul Society.

"Yes. In fact, our own magic was transformed into these swords when we tried to use it, but only Wendy can use her magic through it.

"Anyway, mages group together to form 'guilds' and people request jobs from them such as slaying monsters. Members of a guild bear a special emblem on their bodies to show which one they're in."

He paused for a bit and rolled up his shirt to show the black Fairy Tail mark. This was probably the most he'd ever spoken in his life - asides from arguing with his grandfather - and he still wasn't done yet.

"Long ago, huge creatures called 'dragons' roamed the earth. To defeat them, people learnt their own magic to use it against them. It was called 'dragon slaying magic'. There were three 'generations' of dragon slayers: first generation - those who were raised and taught by a dragon, second generation - those implanted with a dragon lacrima and third generation - those who were both raised by a dragon and contain a lacrima.

"All of us are dragon slayers." Laxus pointed to each person he mentioned. "Natsu, Gajeel and Wendy are first generation. Myself and Cobra are second generation. Sting and Rogue are third generation."

"Seven years ago, the dragons disappeared without a trace. However, a portal was opened recently and ten thousand dragons came through, destroying everything they came across.

"To save everyone, us seven grouped together and used a spell which banished all anomalies. I'm guessing that's why we are here in another world. I don't know where the dragons and the one who was controlling them ended up.

"However, what's been troubling us is that the one who taught us the spell in that exact moment was the dark wizard Zeref – the most evil wizard in history. He used his powers to create many demons which plague our world."

"Why did you trust him?" Komamura inquired.

Laxus stared at the high ceiling while he thought about his answer, "I guess when all of your comrades are dying before you tend not to think straight. But even so, Zeref is a mysterious bastard and we don't really know if he is the all-evil killer we think him to be."

'Finally,' he thought, "and by the way, I kept that to the bare minimum."

"If the dragons and the person controlling them were evil," Unohana spoke up, "then they could be in Hell, but I suppose since you claimed that the spell 'banished' them rather than killed them, I suppose they'd more likely be in Hueco Mundo."

^_-x-x-x-_^

A group of Menos Grande filled a huge clearing. Above them, from the roof and bottom of the desert on the surface, many stalactites had formed. Many of the grey rock formations were only short but others almost touching their ground opposite, the stalagmites.

Sometimes this caused the giant hollows to walk right into them, simple beings as they were. Most of the time this happened, the rock would instantly be decimated with a cero, as it was perceived as a threat. The multiple craters which shaped the clearing's floor were proof of this.

The Gillian swayed back and forth in their little huddle, occasionally knocking into others, which gained them angry roars from the one bumped into before the harm was soon forgotten about.

The ground started shaking. Only lightly at first so it didn't disrupt the hollows immediately. The tremors progressively got bigger and many of the Menos became distressed, some roaring at the unseen cause.

After a few moments, said cause could be seen. It was a Menos Grande like them, but it had a cross instead of eye holes. It was sprinting towards the group.

As it was the same type of hollow as them, the Gillian did label it as dangerous straight away. However, as soon as the newcomer took a bite out of the nearest hollow they became angry.

Almost all of them opened their mouths to charge a cero between their teeth. When they tried to fire it at the hostile being, though, they had disregarded those in front of themselves. This meant that instead of hitting the target, the ceros hit each other, initiating a fight between the giant hollows.

Latrodectus Mactans took advantage of the confusion and tore chunks out of every nearby Gillian, swallowing everything even parts of the black cloaks which apparently weren't made from fabric of any description.

Ceros were being fired in every direction so of course some would hit and destroy those annoying stalactites and stalagmites, also those quartz pillars which actually held the sand roof up. Without support, the hard layer of sand at the bottom of the desert cracked then shattered, the sand previously resting on it falling directly on top of the chaos below.

^_-x-x-x-_^

Far below the final level of Hell was a place that so far no one had ever even imagined let alone seen. Not even the guardians knew of its existence.

In every direction there were unending mirrors, where they joined up was unknown. The mirrors formed a dome around a black castle, so tall one could not see the summit if stood at the base and vice versa. Not that anyone knew if there was a base or not.

The surrounding mirrors did not have smooth surfaces. Cracks that ran on forever created lots of tiny mirrors, each distorting images in its own unique and disturbing way.

The cold stone corridor of the castle echoed with the footsteps of a man with a teenage appearance striding towards a massive black dragon with blue tribal patterns and a white underbelly.

The man's gold trimmed black cloak and white sash blew but his midnight black hair, however, remained still, for he was Zeref and could do that.

"Acnologia," Zeref greeted his subordinate, "How are you finding your new home?"

Acnologia breathed deeply before replying. "Constantly seeing my own twisted reflection…. unnerves me."

The black dragon of the apocalypse was perched on a perfectly sized beam overlooking what it assumed was the floor of this prison on the outside of the castle.

"It's fitting though, don't you think?" Zeref didn't wait for a reply. "For our own personal hell, I mean. It makes it so that we can't hide from our sins; we can't hide from ourselves."

"Ever the depressing guy. I see your point though. So this is where we are eternally punished then?"

"We can only assume that this isn't purgatory: a place where after we are cleansed we will depart to heaven. No, this is hell, where we will remain because we can not be healed, our sins were too great."

^_-x-x-x-_^

The desert of Hueco Mundo should have been the same everywhere: just vast, vast white deserts under a black, moonlit sky. But now there was another inconsistency apart from Las Noches which happened to be a giant sunken part of the sand.

The sunken hole had been created when the supporting quartz pillars had been destroyed. The pressure on the hard bottom layer of sand had been too much and it had crumbled, allowing the mass of sand on top to fall in and fill the small clearing beneath.

If one was watching the sand, one would see a leg break through, trying to find purchase on the desert floor. The leg itself was very long and thin. It was completely black except that the end of it, about a foot was coated in a white bone like substance and it ended in a sharp point, like giant barbs. Seven more identical legs burst from the sand. The white ends dug themselves into the desert ground, allowing the huge body to haul itself out of its sandy confines.

Small streams of sand poured off Latrodectus Mactans' body, following all of its contours. Its Adjuchas form was very similar to how it looked before it became a Gillian. It had shrunk, about the size of a large room now rather than a small house and its body was still almost completely black. The once red pattern on its back was now white and instead of the pattern being one big hourglass, there were multiple version of this but much smaller in size. Each leg was now tipped with a white barb, the long side as sharp as a razor blade and its body now had a huge stinger made of the same white substance.

The mask was strikingly similar but the fangs were much longer and the eight eyes glowed white. Also, around the four eyes on the left was a black pattern, sharp but curved, split into three segments. The weirdest of the new features was that above the mask, there was hair. It was split into two halves; one side was black and the other was white, the black half covered the four eyes on the right and the white side was long, almost touching the ground.

^_-x-x-x-_^

* * *

**End of chapter**

* * *

**Yes, I lead you on; the spirit wasn't significant at all, it was just a random ghost. **

**Actually, I had originally intended to make him the important one but because I was going to make him turn into a hollow, I just decided to use the pre-existing one instead.**

**'****Latrodectus Mactans****'**** is just the scientific name for ****'****black widow****'****.**

**By the way, so people don't annoyed, it's not an OC. I know that's a big hint but I don't really care if it makes people want to read and find out who it is (even though its pretty obvious.)**

**^_-x-x-x-_^**

**The reason why I included Zeref x Acnologia in the poll was to just hint about this chapter.**

**Also, remember to vote in the poll on my profile – please don't write your preferences in a review if you can help it.**

**^_-x-x-x-_^**

**Top ten poll results:**

**1) Natsu x Yoruichi**

**2) Cobra x Soi-Fon**

**3) Wendy x Hitsugaya**

**4) Laxus x Matsumoto**

**5) Rogue x Hinamori**

**6) Gajeel x Matsumoto**

**7) Natsu x Rukia**

**8) Wendy x Karin**

**9) Laxus x Yoruichi**

**10) Cobra x Unohana**

**If you don't like any of those, then vote for others. (On the actual poll, that is.)**


	9. A N

**A/N - Unfortunately, I am entering exam season so I won't have much time to write due to revision. I probably won't publish for a while but not long enough to put the story on hiatus. Sorry if you actually care about this fanfiction.**


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